Tucson Visitor Statistics

Domestic overnight visitors per year - 3.99 million
Economic impact of visitors - $2.3 billion
Median age of visitors - 48 years
Median income of visitors - $71,000
Average length of stay - 4.5 days
Average party size - 2.49 people
Top states of visitor origin including Arizona - California, Colorado, Texas, Illinois, Washington, Minnesota, New York, North Carolina, and Oregon

Mexico Visitors

Mexico visitors are a valued market segment for the tourism industry in Tucson. It is estimated that over 22 million visitors cross the border to shop and play in Tucson. Of the $1 billion spent in Arizona annually, we estimate that Mexican visitors create $360 million in economic impact in Metropolitan Tucson.

The statistics listed below are derived from a study conducted in 2001; The Economic Impacts of Mexican Visitors to Arizona by the Economic and Business Research Program, Eller College of Management, University of Arizona. A few of the numbers have been adjusted to reflect trends in travel identified, informally, by U.S. Customs Service and the Immigration and Naturalization Service.

The statistics for Mexican visitors are not reflected in the general statistics outlined in other areas of this section.

15,695 non-American citizen arrivals from Mexico to Tucson International Airport.

Age distribution of entrants into Arizona:
     18 and under 1.48%
     19-25 7.78%
     26-35 29.5%
     36-45 39.1%
     46-59 19.11%
     60 and older 3.02%

3.9% of Mexican visitors spend the night in Arizona.
78% of those visitors stay in hotels.

Just over 16% of Mexican visitors to Tucson spend at least one night. The remaining visitor parties are day-trippers.

Reason for visit:
     Shopping 72.2%
     Visit family 7.76%
     Vacation 2.51%
     Medical 0.22%
     Business 1.52%
     Personal 0.72%
     Work 14.41%
     Other 0.58%

31.3% of Mexican visitors' expenditures are made in Pima County.
30.4% of Mexican visitors' expenditures are made in Tucson.

Studies show that, typically, the farther a Mexican visitor party travels to an Arizona destination city, the more the party will spend.